Chapter 3.17, Verses 21–30

Yoga Vashishtha 3.17.21–30

(I am that One Consciousness in which this whole panorama appears and disappears)

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच ।

उत्तरद्वारगासंख्यरथहस्त्यश्वसंकुलम् ।

एकभृत्यविनिर्णीतदक्षिणापथविग्रहम् ॥ २१ ॥

कर्णाटनाथरचितपूर्वदेशक्रियाक्रमम् ।

सुराष्ट्राधिपनिर्णीतसर्वम्लेच्छोत्तरापथम् ॥ २२ ॥

मालदेशसमाक्रान्तसर्वपाश्चात्यतङ्गणम् ।

दक्षिणाब्धितटायातलङ्कादूतविनोदितम् ॥ २३ ॥

पूर्वाब्धितटमाहेन्द्रसिद्धोक्तगगनापगम् ।

उत्तराब्धितटायातदूतवर्णितगुह्यकम् ॥ २४ ॥

पश्चिमाब्धितटालोकवर्णितास्तमद्यक्रमम् ।

असंख्यवद्धभूपालकलाकीर्णाखिलाजिरम् ॥ २५ ॥

यज्ञवाटपठद्विप्र जिततूर्याग्रनिःस्वनम् ।

बन्दिकोलाहलोल्लासप्रतिश्रुद्वनकुञ्जरम् ॥ २६ ॥

गेयवाद्योद्यतध्वानप्रध्वनद्गगनान्तरम् ।

हयहस्तिरथाराजिरजोमेघघनाम्बरम् ॥ २७ ॥

पुष्पकर्पूरधूपाढ्यं गन्धामोदितपर्वतम् ।

सर्वमण्डलसंभाररचितानेकशासनम् ॥ २८ ॥

यशःकर्पूरजलदसुशुभ्राम्बरपर्वतम् ।

रोदसीस्तम्भभूतैकस्वप्रतापजितार्ककम् ॥ २९ ॥

आरम्भमन्थरोदारकार्यसंव्यग्रभूमिपम् ।

नानानगरनिर्माणसोद्योगस्थपतीश्वरम् ॥ ३० ॥

Maharishi Vashishta continued:

3.17.21  

Filled at the northern gate with countless chariots, elephants, horses and soldiers; a single servant of his had already settled the war in the southern lands.

3.17.22  

The king of Karṇāṭaka had carried out all the ceremonies in the eastern region; the Lord of Saurāṣṭra had completely subdued all the barbarian tribes of the North.

3.17.23  

The ruler of Malwa had conquered the whole Western region; the envoy who came from Lanka on the southern seacoast delighted everyone.

3.17.24  

The envoy from the King of Mahendra on the eastern seacoast described the rivers that flow in the sky; the messenger who came from the Northern seacoast told secret tales of the Guhyakas (yakṣas).

3.17.25  

The messenger who looked toward the Western seacoast described the present order of the sunset lands; the whole battlefield was crowded with innumerable subordinate kings like bees.

3.17.26  

Brahmins were chanting at the sacrificial ground and drowning out the foremost war drums; the elephants were trumpeting in answer to the loud praises sung by the bards.

3.17.27  

Songs and musical instruments resounded and filled the sky; clouds of dust raised by horses, elephants and chariots darkened the heavens.

3.17.28  

Fragrant with heaps of flowers, camphor and incense, the mountains seemed perfumed; many royal orders were issued, fitted with the seals of all the provincial circles.

3.17.29  

His fame was a spotless white cloud mountain of camphor; by the single blazing power of his own valour he outshone the Sun and became the only pillar that upheld earth and heaven.

3.17.30  

Kings were busy with great and noble undertakings that had only just begun; master-builders and lords were fully engaged in constructing many new cities.

Summary of the Teachings:

These ten verses form part of a grand visionary description that Sage Vasiṣṭha gives to Śrī Rāma inside the inner apartments of the palace. The scene is not an ordinary earthly assembly; it is a splendid, dream-like, almost magical display of royal glory that appears before the mind’s eye. Every direction, every sound, every scent, every messenger arriving from the farthest corners of the earth testifies that the entire world has come under the sway of a single Supreme King (here implied to be the Universal Self or Pure Consciousness appearing as the ruler).

The deeper teaching is that the whole universe—its oceans, mountains, countries, armies, sacrifices, music, fame, and endless activity—is nothing but a vast projection of the mind, just like a dream-city that looks perfectly real while the dream lasts. All the countless kings, envoys, elephants, chariots, and shining glory described here are seen only because the mind imagines them; they have no independent existence apart from the consciousness that perceives them.

When the mind is Still and Pure, the same Consciousness shines as the one Supreme ruler who effortlessly governs everything without moving. The “single servant” who settled the south, the “single valour” that outshines the Sun, and the “single pillar” upholding heaven and earth all point to this one undivided Self. The endless bustle of building cities and issuing orders shows how the world-appearance keeps expanding through desire and action, yet it is all momentary and unreal.

Thus Vasiṣṭha is gently showing Rāma that even the greatest imperial splendour—more magnificent than anything in ordinary history—is only a long dream. Seeing this clearly, the Wise person becomes free from attraction and aversion toward worldly power and enjoyment.

The final Realization comes when one realises “I am that One Consciousness in which this whole panorama appears and disappears.” Then all sense of being a limited king or subject vanishes, and one abides as the boundless Self.